Being a student is many things. Being a blind student adds an extra layer onto all of them. For me, it has been laughter and friendship, discovering new places, selfie’s and food with great people. But it’s also been a pretty stressful experience, thanks to a lack of organisation on the part of my university….
I only recently discovered the term ableism. Up until then I knew that being disabled changed the way people acted around me but I had no word to encompass what was happening. I struggled as a child to voice why I found the actions of other people so frustrating, why seemingly small things felt so…
Having a dog can be a good thing. For some, it is a smoother, more effective way of travel. For others the cane is by far the better option. Both are perfectly valid experiences, what works for one blind person doesn’t for another. I have come to loathe the perception that my life must have…
I’ve been back in England for 3 days now which is a bit hard to believe. Studying abroad has been one of the best experiences I’ve ever had and I’m so glad that I made the decision this time last year to investigate it. It took almost 6 months to organise and I had no…
I find bits of myself in all kinds of characters. Not just girls, not just white girls…not just white girls with a disability. But just because I see myself in people who don’t fit my demographic doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t diversify literature. I am always so hopeful, hopeful but nervous, when I buy a…
I joined a guide dogs facebook group and it was a mistake. A really big one actually. I recently decided to join an informal guide dogs facebook group. I’ve always been interested in finding out more about my dogs parents and a friend suggested that perhaps some people there would have heard of them. So…
I’ve been in Spain almost a month, which is crazy, really crazy. I only have 4 months left here and it already feels like it’s going to go so fast. At first, there was only 4 of us, including myself, in the class. However by week 2 2 more people had joined us, and now…
So I have the afternoon free and thought I’d write an update. Today I went to the school again, this time on my own. Previously I’ve been doing it with the person I am working with from ONCE, but I wanted to do a couple of things. I put more money on my card for…
I’ve written about my identity as a blind person before, then as a teenager, and how I dislike the label of bravery being applied to me. All of that still stands, but today I was thinking about it a lot more. In truth, I’ve been thinking about it a great deal recently, as I notice…
So, things had been going really well in Spain. The person from ONCE who is working with me is good, and she will be working with me again next week, to show me how to find my classes within the school building. I’ve also got most of the things I need for my room, and…